先锋10号穿越小行星带

If spacecraft are to visit the outer solar system, they must cross the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. The Pioneer mission was faced with the question of just how dangerous this asteroid belt would be to a spacecraft passing through it.
Image Credit: NASA

This illustration made on Nov. 26, 1974, by Rick Giudice shows the Pioneer 10 spacecraft traveling through the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, the largest planet in the solar system. At the time, it was uncertain whether it would traverse it safely since the density of particles large enough to damage the craft was not yet known, but Pioneer 10 became the first satellite to enter and pass through the asteroid belt.

The mission’s primary goal was to explore Jupiter, its satellites, its magnetic field, and trapped radiation belts. On Nov. 6, 1973, while still 16 million miles from Jupiter, Pioneer 10 began to image the giant planet with its photopolarimeter, and shortly thereafter began to take measurements with its other instruments as well. Twenty days later, the spacecraft passed the front of Jupiter’s bowshock, where the solar wind clashed with the planet’s magnetosphere. By Dec. 1, the spacecraft was returning images of the planet exceeding the best pictures from Earth. Pioneer 10 sent its last signal on Jan. 23, 2003, when it was 7.6 billion miles (12.23 billion kilometers) away from Earth.

Learn about Pioneer and other planetary exploration and scientific satellite research planned for the 1970s in the Seeds of Discovery documentary on NASA+.

Image Credit: NASA

如果宇宙飞船要访问外太阳系，它们必须穿越火星和木星之间的小行星带。先驱者号任务面临的问题是，这个小行星带对通过它的航天器来说有多危险。
影像来源：NASA

这幅由里克·朱迪切于1974年11月26日绘制的插图显示了先锋10号航天器穿过火星和木星之间的小行星带，木星是太阳系中最大的行星。当时，由于尚不清楚足以损坏飞船的粒子密度，它是否能安全穿越该小行星带，但先锋10号成为第一颗进入并穿越小行星带的航天器。

这次任务的主要目标是探索木星、它的卫星、它的磁场和被捕获的辐射带。1973年11月6日，当先锋10号距离木星仍有1,600万英里时，它开始用光偏振仪对这颗巨大的行星进行成像，此后不久，它也开始用其他仪器进行测量。20天后，航天器经过木星弓形激波的前部，太阳风与木星的磁层在那里发生碰撞。到12月1日，该航天器返回的地球图像超过了地球上最好的照片。先锋10号于2003年1月23日发出最后一个信号，当时它距离地球76亿英里（122.3亿公里）。

在NASA+上的“发现的种子”纪录片中了解先锋号和其他计划于20世纪70年代进行的行星探测和科学卫星研究。

图片来源：NASA